A roundup of news on sporting events, people and places in Southeast Michigan by columnist Jim Evans.

Tuesday, May 13, 2014

Saying thanks to athletic directors everywhere

I
was honored by the Oakland County Athletic Directors Association earlier this
year.The
plaque thanked me “For your service, dedication and commitment to athletics in
Oakland County.”

On
it, my name was spelled Jim Evan.Touche’
since I have bungled plenty of names since I started in this business in the late
1970s.

Honestly,
I was very touched by the award.

I
didn’t give much of a speech. It lasted about 32.45 seconds. I opted for a hurried
thanks. Speaking in front of a crowd is my autographed phobia. I’d be more
comfortable kissing Joan Rivers or
having an intellectual conversation with any of the Kardashians.

But
my relative silence did not mean I was not appreciative. The award meant more
to me than most people will ever know.

My
dad was a coach and an athletic director in Walled Lake. I know how many long hours
those folks put in. They get to the office early. They turn off the lights in
the gym late.

Missed
meals used to be wrapped in aluminum foil and reheated. Now they are put in the
microwave in a Tupperware container. It’s all the same. Athletic directors and
coaches miss dinner plenty.

Coaches
make sacrifices. Athletic directors make sacrifices. Educators make sacrifices.
They all work long hours. They do it for our kids.

I
was a little kid when I realized that. My formative years were spent at
practice or in the bleachers at what was then Walled Lake High School. I’d
either be helping round up the basketballs, shagging baseballs, or watching a game
from the far corner of the bleachers.

I
loved every minute of it.

I
still do.

Really,
my life has not changed much, and I could not be happier. I’m still going to
games. I’m still going to practices. And, I am mostly still sitting in the far
corners of gyms.

I
have always had a love for high school sports. It must be genetic. Some people
don’t understand the value of sports in terms of education. Granted, they might
not help you get ready for the SAT or the ACT, but they sure the heck help you
get ready for life.

I
had countless pals who would’ve dropped out of school and gone straight to the
Wixom Ford or Riley’s gas station if it had not been for sports. They begrudgingly
went to math or science class. Contrast that with them sprinting to the
wrestling room or the football field.

Cross
country runners will tell you it takes hard work in order to succeed. That same
thought is echoed through every high school locker room by countless young men
and women, no matter what the sport.

Put
in the miles. Or heft the weights. Or shoot baskets in the summer. Or swat
baseballs in the cage. This is getting redundant. You get the point. You reap
what you sow. So don’t just shrug your shoulders and say “So what?”

Sports
are a good road test for life. Show up ill-prepared for a job interview and
while the scoreboard won’t confirm it, you’ll be a loser. That job goes to
somebody else.

Keith
Dunlap of The Oakland Press was also honored at the banquet.

To
reiterate, I did not give much of a speech. I am no Dale Carnegie grad. My
relative silence should not be misinterpreted. I could not have been more
appreciative. I grew up with high school sports. I have spent my entire adult
life with high school sports.

Thanks
to all of the athletic directors. Thanks especially to Brian Gordon, the
athletic director at Novi High School. He used to hold that position in Royal
Oak, where he also coached the varsity baseball team.

Thanks
most of all to the late Tom Evans. He was an AD. He was my dad. I couldn’t
speak at his funeral, either. Sorry, Pop. You didn’t raise a Toastmaster.